STILL WATERS AND GREEN PASTURES
PSALM 23:2
INTRODUCTION:
FROM AFRICAN COLONIAL HISTORY COMES THIS INTERESTING TALE:
IN THE DEEP JUNGLES OF AFRICA, A TRAVELER WAS MAKING A LONG TRIP. NATIVE PORTERS HAD BEEN ENGAGED FROM A TRIBE TO CARRY THE LOADS. THE FIRST DAY THEY MARCHED RAPIDLY AND WENT FAR. THE TRAVELER HAD HIGH HOPES OF A SPEEDY JOURNEY. BUT THE SECOND MORNING THE TRIBESMEN REFUSED TO MOVE. FOR SOME STRANGE REASON THEY JUST SAT, AS THOUGH IN DEEP THOUGHT. WHEN HE INQUIRED ABOUT THIS STRANGE BEHAVIOR, THE TRAVELER WAS INFORMED THAT THEY HAD GONE TOO FAST THE FIRST DAY, AND THEY WERE NOW WAITING FOR THEIR SOULS TO CATCH UP TO THEIR BODIES.
LET’S PLAY QUESTION AND ANSWER FOR A MOMENT. I’LL GIVE YOU THE SYMPTOMS AND YOU GIVE ME THE CONDITION.
70,000,000 AMERICANS SUFFER FROM THIS.
38,000 PEOPLE DIE FROM THIS EACH YEAR.
IT CAUSES A PRODUCTIVITY LOSS OF $70,000,000,000 A YEAR.
64% OF TEENAGERS HAVE POOR PERFORMANCE IN SCHOOL BECAUSE OF IT.
PEOPLE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 30-40 SUFFER FROM THIS MOST SEVERELY.
OF THOSE OVER 60, 50% ARE IMPACTED BY THIS CONDITION.
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
THAT’S RIGHT THE ANSWER IS INSOMMNIA.
WE SHOULD NOT BE SURPRISED AT THIS. I THINK THERE IS IN PEOPLE A NATURAL DISPOSITION NOT TO WANT TO REST. HAVE YOU EVER HEARD A CHILD SAY “MOM, I’M GOING TO JUST GO AND LIE DOWN RIGHT NOW AND TAKE MY NAP.”
WE’VE TRIED TO CONDITION OURSELVES TO “GET BY” WITH AS LITTLE SLEEP AS POSSIBLE. THEN WE COMPLAIN OF TIREDNESS, BURN OUT, AND WEARINESS.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT ROBS MANY OF THEIR SLEEP IS WORRY. SOMETIMES IT MAY BE A LEGITIMATE CONCERN, BUT MORE OFTEN THAN NOT IT’S UNNECESSARY THINGS THAT KEEPS US AWAKE. WHICH OF THESE ARE WE GUILTY OF?
1. THINGS WE NEED TO DO, OR PEOPLE WE NEED TO SEE. UNLESS YOU’RE PLANNING A MIDNIGHT MEETING YOU CAN’T DO ANYTHING ABOUT THIS UNTIL THE MORNING.
2. THE UNANSWERABLE QUESTIONS OF LIFE. QUESTIONS LIKE “WHERE DID I COME FROM?” “WHAT IS THE MEANING OF LIFE?” QUESTIONS WE CAN ASK OVER AND OVER AGAIN AND STILL NOT COME UP WITH AN ACCEPTABLE ANSWER. THE ONE THAT GETS ME IS “WHY SOMETHING HAD TO HAPPEN? WHY DID MY BROTHER DIE AND NOT ME?” WHAT SEEMS TO BE ACCEPTABLE BY OUR STANDARDS MAY NOT BE ACCORDING TO GOD’S PLAN. UNANSWERABLE QUESTIONS CAN STEAL OUR REST.
3. THINGS THAT WE CANNOT CHANGE. I USED TO HAVE BAD NIGHTS AROUND EXAMS WHEN I WENT TO SCHOOL. IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ABC I WASN’T TRYING MY BEST AND I ALWAYS FEARED FAILING. AT ST. THOMAS, UNB, AND ACADIA I DID MY LEVEL BEST AND FOUND OUT I DID BETTER IN SEMINAR COURSES. I DIDN’T UNDERSTAND MANY ESSAY QUESTIONS AND AS A RESULT I HAD DIFFICULTY SLEEPING THE NIGHTS BEFORE WRITTEN EXAMS. I COULDN’T CHANGE TOMORROW, BUT I COULDN’T STOP THINKING ABOUT IT EITHER. PERHAPS FOR YOU IT COULD BE SOMETHING ELSE. PERHAPS IT’S A BANK APPOINTMENT, OR A SURGICAL PROCEEDURE. IT COULD BE A SPECIAL DAY, LIKE A WEDDING OR FUNERAL. IT COULD BE THE FIRST DAY ON A NEW JOB. GOOD OR BAD IT MAKES NO DIFFERENCE. THE EVENTS OF THE NEXT DAY CAN CHANGE HOW YOU SLEEP THE NIGHT BEFORE.
THERE IS A PHYSICAL DIMENSION TO WORRY AND LACK OF REST. IT HAS BEEN SHOWN THAT UNEXPLAINED WEIGHT LOSS CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO WORRYING. WORRYING CAN CAUSE, HIVES, SWELLING OF THE EYES AND LIPS, ASTHMA, HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE, HEART TROUBLE, BLINDNESS, MIGRAINE HEADACHES, THYROID AND STOMACH DISORDERS AND A NUMBER OF OTHER THINGS.
PEOPLE HAVE TRIED A VARIETY OF CURES AND TREATMENTS FOR INSOMNIA AND WORRYING. TREATMENTS FOR INSOMNIA RANGE FROM MOUTH GUARDS TO HERBAL TEAS AND MEDICATIONS. SOME PEOPLE USE A GLASS OF MILK. EVERYDAY IN THE UNITED STATES 30 TONS OF ASPIRIN, SLEEPING PILLS AND TRANQUILIZERS ARE TAKEN TO HELP PEOPLE SLEEP. ONE DOCTOR PRESCRIBED READING PSALM 23 FIVE TIMES A DAY, TO A PATIENT WHO CAME TO HIM BECAUSE OF WORRY.
ONE MAN EVEN HIRED ANOTHER MAN TO DO HIS WORRYING FOR HIM. IT’S TRUE ONE MAN OFFERED ANOTHER MAN $200,000 A YEAR TO DO HIS WORRYING FOR HIM. THE MAN WHO WAS HIRED ASKED “WHERE WILL YOU GET THE MONEY TO PAY ME? THE OTHER MAN REPLIED, “THAT IS YOUR FIRST WORRY.”
THE PSALMIST HAD REASON TO WORRY. WE LEARNED LAST WEEK THAT WHEN HE PENNED PSALM 23 THAT HE WAS AT WAR THIS TIME WITH HIS SON ABSALOM. DAVID WOULD BE AT WAR MUCH OF HIS REIGN. HE WOULD NOT BE ALLOWED BY GOD TO BUILD HIS TEMPLE BECAUSE OF THE VIOLENCE IN HIS LIFE. DAVID WOULD BE KNOWN AS “THE WARRIOR KING.” IN THE MIDST OF HIS WORRY GOD GAVE HIM PSALM 23 AS THE TREATMENT FOR HIM, BUT ALSO FOR US.
BIBLICAL OVERVIEW:
NOW YOU KNOW THAT THIS PSALM IS SOMETIMES CALLED “THE SHEPHERD’S PSALM”. WE RECOGNIZE GOD AS THE SHEPHERD AND THAT WE ARE THE SHEEP. THIS SYMBOLISM IS SPOT ON, IT COULDN’T BE ANY BETTER, FOR INDEED WE ARE VERY MUCH LIKE SHEEP.
WE LEARNED FROM VERSE ONE THAT GOD AS OUR SHEPHERD IS OUR PROTECTOR, SUSTAINER AND PROVIDER. HERE IN VERSE TWO WE FIND A VERY FINICKY ANIMAL THAT ALSO DOESN’T LIKE TO REST, AND THAT IS SHEEP. INTERESTINGLY SHEEP NEED TO REST FOR THE SAME REASONS THAT PEOPLE DO. SO LETS LOOK AT THREE ASPECTS OF THE SHEEP’S LIFE THAT RELATE TO SLEEP.
POINT ONE: WHY DOES THE SHEEP NEED REST?
YOU MAY THINK THAT THIS IS A STUPID QUESTION. OBVIOUSLY THEY NEED SLEEP BECAUSE THEY ARE TIRED. BUT THERE IS MUCH MORE OT IT THAN THAT. CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING FACTS ABOUT SHEEP.
1. SHEEP WILL NOT SLEEP STANDING UP. THEY WILL NOT LIE DOWN UNLESS THEY HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THE SHEPHERD TO PROTECT THEM, AND PROVIDE FOR THEM. THE SHEEP NEED TO TRUST THE SHEPHERD IN ORDER TO LIE DOWN.
YOU AND I WILL ONLY REST IN THE LORD WHEN WE TRUST IN HIM. WHY DO WE TRY TO SOLVE MOST OF OUR PROBLEMS IN OUR OWN STRENGTH? IT IS A LACK OF TRUST. TRUST IS A WORD THAT IS DEMONSTRATED BY ACTION. TURN WITH ME TO PSALM 121.
PSALM 121:1-4:
I lift up my eyes to the hills— where does my help come from? 2 My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber; 4 indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
HERE THE PSALMIST IS ASKING WHERE HIS HELP IS GOING TO COME FROM. HE THEN SAYS IT COMES FROM THE LORD. HE PICTURES THE LORD AS STANDING GUARD OVER HIM. NOW THE REASON ARMIES POST GUARDS IS SO THE REST OF THE ARMY CAN RELAX AND REST. A SOLDIER CAN’T REST IF HE DOESN’T PUT HIS TRUST IN THE GUARD. YOU AND I WILL ONLY FIND REST IN THE SHEPHERD WHEN WE PUT OUR COMPLETE TRUST IN HIM.
2. WHEN SHEEP ARE STANDING OR WANDERING ABOUT, THEY DO NOT HAVE TIME TO LISTEN TO THE SHEPHERD. IN SHORT THEY GO THEIR OWN WAY. THE STORY IS TOLD OF A MAN WHO SAW A SHEPHERD GOING INTO THE BARN TO FEED A SHEEP WITH A BROKEN LEG. WHEN HE ASKED THE SHEPHERD HOW THE SHEEP BROKE HIS LEG THE SHEPHERD REPLIED THAT HE DID IT. THE SHEPHERD SAID THAT THE SHEEP WAS ALWAYS WANDERING OFF ON HIS OWN AND THAT EVENTUALLY HE WOULD FALL OFF A CLIFF OR GET ATTACHED AND KILLED BY WILD ANIMALS. WORSE STILL WAS THAT HE WOULD PROBABLY HAVE LED OTHER SHEEP TO THE SAME FATE.
WE CAN BE A LOT LIKE THAT SHEEP WITH THE BROKEN LEG. IF WE DON’T TAKE TIME TO LET THE SHEPHERD LEAD US, THEN WE WILL WANDER OFF AND DO OUR THING. WE’LL TRY TO DESIGN OUR OWN SPIRITUALITY. OUR SPIRITUALITY WILL NOT BE BASED ON THE OBJECTIVE WORD OF GOD, BUT ON OUR OWN SUBJECTIVITY. THIS EVENTUALLY WILL DESTROY OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. THE CATCH PHRASE THAT WILL IDENTIFY WHEN THIS HAPPENS IS THIS “THE GOD I BELIEVE IN” OR “THIS IS WHAT I BELIEVE”.
3. SHEEP CANNOT DIGEST THEIR FOOD UNLESS THEY LIE DOWN. IT’S THEN THAT THEY REGURGITATE OR RE-CHEW THE MEAL.
THIS WORKS FOR US AS WELL. WE NEED TO TAKE TIME TO MEDITATE ON THE WORD, THE SERVICE, BE IT MESSAGE, SONG, OR PRAYER TO REALLY DIGEST IT. LISTEN, SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE TAUGHT ABOUT THE CHRISTIAN LIFE ARE EXTREMELY DIFFICULT. WE ARE ATTRACTED TO EASY BELIEVISM, NOT TO THE ABSOLUTE TRUTH OF GOD. SOMETIMES IT TAKES TIME FOR US TO COME AROUND AND PRACTICE WHAT THE SCRIPTURES TEACH. IN THE STRUGGLE IS THE VICTORY.
4. SHEEP’S WOOL AND THEIR BODIES GROW THE FASTEST AND STRONGEST WHEN THEY ARE AT REST.
WE ARE LIKE THIS AS WELL. REMEMBER SHEEP ONLY LIE DOWN WHEN THEY HAVE COMPLETE TRUST IN THE SHEPHERD. WHEN WE HAVE COMPLETE TRUST IN OUR SHEPHERD THEN WE WILL MATURE QUICKLY, AND WE WILL HAVE A FIRM FOUNDATION.
5. SHEEP WILL REST WHEN THEY HAVE COMPLETED THEIR TASK. THIS WOULD MEAN WHEN THE SHEEP FEEL THAT THEY HAVE ARRIVED AT THEIR DESTINATION, OR WHERE THEY WANT TO BE, WHEN THEY ARE SATISFIED, AND WHEN THEY FEEL SAFE.
THERE IS GREAT REST IN THE REST OF COMPLETION. IT IS A VERY BIBLICAL PRINCIPLE, USHERED IN BY GOD IN GENESIS.
GENESIS 2:2-3:
By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
WE’VE ALL HAD THIS TYPE OF REST. ARRIVING HOME AFTER A LONG JOURNEY, THE RELEASE YOU FEEL. POSSIBLY IT IS AFTER COMPLETING A DIFFICULT TASK. IT’S THE BLESSED REST OF COMPLETION.
IT IS NOT A RECUPERATIVE REST, BUT A REST OF COMPLETION. IT IS A REST OF MEDITATION. THE WORD “SABBATH” COMES FROM THE HEBREW WORD “SHABBAT” MEANING “TO CEASE” OR “DESIST”. THE PRIMARY MEANING IS THAT OF CESSATION OF WORK.
NOW GOD DIDN’T NEED TO REST AFTER CREATION, YET HE CHOSE TO, SO THE QUESTION IS WHY? THE REASON IS THIS. IT IS THE FIRST RECORDED TIME THAT IS SEPARATED JUST FOR GOD. THUS THE SABBATH REST IS GOD’S BOUNDARY TO THE WORLD. OUR OBSERVANCE OF THE SABBATH REST SETS US APART FROM THE WORLD AND IN FACT IS AN ACT OF HOLINESS.
MARK 2:27-28:
Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”
I’M SURE NOT MANY THOUGHT OF OUR TIME OF REST AS AN ACT OF WORSHIP AND HOLINESS. BUT WHEN WE LIVE IN A SEVEN DAY A WEEK BUSY WORLD, THE PEOPLE WHO TAKE TIME TO REST IN THE LORD WILL BE SEEN AS DIFFERENT OR SET APART WHICH IS WHAT HOLINESS IS, BEING SET APART FOR GOD.
NOTE ALSO THAT THE SHEPHERD LEADS THEM INTO GREEN PASTURES. THE PSALMIST SPECIFICALLY POINTS OUT THAT THE SHEPHERD LEADS THEM TO “GREEN” PASTURES. NOW WE MIGHT AUTOMATICALLY SUSPECT HE IS TALKING ABOUT PROVISION FOR THE SHEEP. WHAT YOU MAY NOT KNOW IS THAT THIS IS ACTUALLY FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE SHEEP. IN ISRAEL THERE IS A TYPE OF GRASS CALLED “GOATS GRASS”. IT LOOKS LIKE THE BEST GRASS YOU COULD EVER FIND. THICK AND GREEN YOU WOULD THINK IT WOULD BE GRAT FOR FOOD. THE FACT IS THAT IF SHEEP WERE TO EAT THIS GOATS GRASS, THEY WOULD BE DEAD WITHIN 24 HOURS.
THE SHEEP CAN’T RECOGNIZE THE DANGER. IF GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY THEY WOULD EAT THE ENTIRE FIELD. ONLY A SKILLED SHEPHERD CAN TELL THE DIFFERENCE.
WE ARE ALSO LIKE THIS. WE NEED THE SKILLED EYE OF THE SHEPHERD ON THE LOCAL LEVEL WHO HAS STUDIED, AND KNOWS THE SPIRITUAL PITFALLS THAT PEOPLE CAN FALL INTO. THE NEXT STEP IS HARDER, WE NEED TO TRUST THE TEACHING TO PROTECT US FROM FALSE TEACHERS. IF WE FALL INTO FALSE TEACHING THE END WILL BE THE SAME AS THAT OF THE SHEEP. IF WILL LEAVE US SPIRITUALLY DEAD.
POINT TWO: HE LEADS ME TO QUIET WATERS:
YOU CAN SEE THAT WE ARE A LOT LIKE SHEEP WHEN IT COMES TO REST. BUT ARE READY TO LET GOD LEAD US TO QUIET WATERS.
SHEEP HAVE A NATURAL FEAR OF WATER. IN FACT SOME HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO DROWN IN TWO FEET OF WATER OR LESS. SHEEP DO NOT FLOAT. OVER 70% OF THEIR BODIES ARE MADE OF WATER. NOT SURPRISINGLY THOUGH, JUST AS WE ARE VERY MUCH LIKE SHEEP WHEN IT COMES TO SLEEP, WE ARE ALSO LIKE THEM WHEN IT COMES TO WATER.
WATER FOR SHEEP DOES NOT USUALLY COME FROM THE JORDAN RIVER. IT IS TOO FAST. SHEPHERDS WOULD HAVE TO MAKE DAMS FOR THE SHEEP TO DRINK FROM IT. THEY WILL NOT GO TO BUSY OR FAST RIVERS.
SHEEP GAIN THEIR WATER FROM THE DEW THAT IS ON THE GRASS IN THE MORNING. SHEPHERDS USUALLY HAVE THEIR FLOCKS MOVING ABOUT 4:00 A.M. TO GET THE SHEEP TO WHERE THEY CAN GET THE GRASS WITH DEW.
NOW THE SHEPHERD JUST DOESN’T LEAD HIS FLOCK TO A PATCH OF GRASS AND LEAVE THEM TO IT. DAILY HE LEADS THEM TO FRESH TENDER GRASS. IT HAS WHAT IS NEEDED TO SATISFY, IT IS TENDER AND EASY TO CHEW AND DIGEST. THE SHEPHERD DOES EVERYTHING NECESSARY TO GIVE US GOOD PASTURE.
THE SAD THING IS THAT IF SHEEP ARE THIRSTY THEY BECOME RESTLESS AND WILL DRINK FROM ANY SOURCE OF WATER AVAILABLE. THEY NEED THE SHEPHERD TO LEAD THEM TO GOOD WATER.
WE ARE A LOT LIKE THE SHEEP IN THIS WAY. PEOPLE IN THE WORLD ARE THIRSTY FOR ANSWERS TO DEEP QUESTIONS OF LIFE. WITHOUT A SHEPHERD TO LEAD THEM, THEY WILL DRINK FROM THE POLLUTED WATERS OF CULTS, NEW AGE, AND VARIOUS PHILOSOPHIES OF THIS WORLD. THEY WILL LEAD US AS BAD WATER LEADS THE SHEEP EVENTUALLY TO DEATH.
AS SHEEP, WHEN WE DRINK FROM THE WATER THAT THE SHEPHERD LEADS US TO, WE WILL BE SATISFIED:
JOHN 7:37-38:
On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.”
JOHN 4:13-14:
Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
JESUS IS THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN LEAD US TO THE STILL QUIET DEEP CLEAN PURE SATISFYING WATER THAT WE NEED.
POINT THREE: SCRIPTURAL PRINCIPLES FOR DEALING WITH STRESS:
THE BIBLE CAN OFFER US SOME PRINCIPLES IN DEALING WITH STRESS. WE’RE GOING TO LOOK AT A FEW OF THEM NOW:
1. WE MUST HAVE TIME IN THE WORD OF GOD. THE WORD OF GOD BRINGS REFRESHMENT AND GIVES MEANING TO LIFE. WE CAN BE CONTENTED AND RELAXED IN THE MIDST OF GREAT STRUGGLE BY HIDING THE WORD OF GOD IN OUR HEART AND DWELLING ON IT IN DIFFICULT TIMES. WE WILL NOT BE LED ASTRAY BY FALSE TEACHING AS WE WILL BE ABLE TO TEST THE TEACHING WITH THE SCRIPTURES. WE WILL BE ENCOURAGED BY THE SCRIPTURES AND BE COMFORTED BY THEM.
IN THE WORD WE WILL FIND THAT GOD IS ALSO CLEARING THE WAY AND THE BEST PATH FOR US TO WALK ON. GOD WILL LEAD US TO DO THE RIGHT THING AT THE RIGHT TIME AND THAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WORRY AND TRUST.
MARK 13:11: Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.
MATTHEW 6:33-34:
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
2. SPEND TIME IN DAILY PRAYER WITH GOD. THIS WILL ALLOW US TO KNOW THE POWER THAT IS AT OUR DISPOSAL. THERE IS GREAT PEACE FOR THE SHEEP WHEN THEY CAN LAY DOWN WITH THE SHEPHERD.
3. LEARN TO RELY ON GOD AND HIS PROMISES. JUST LISTEN TO THESE:
JEREMIAN 15:16: When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty.
Psalm 119:103-104:
How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! 104 I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path.
EZEKIEL 34:14-17
I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.
EPHESIANS 1:3-9:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.
CONCLUSION:
TO LIE IN GREEN PASTURES AND BESIDE STILL WATERS WITH THE GOOD SHEPHERD GOES AGAINST WHAT THE WORLD NOW BELIEVES. THE WORLD FOLLOWS PSALM 23, BUT A DIFFERENT VERSION OF PSALM 23.
THE CLOCK IS MY DICTATOR, I SHALL NOT REST. IT MAKES ME LIE DOWN ONLY WHEN EXHAUSTED. IT LEADS ME TO DEEP DEPRESSION. IT HOUNDS MY SOUL. IT LEADS ME IN CIRCLES OF FRENZY FOR ACTIVITY’S SAKE. EVEN THOUGH I RUN FRANTICALLY FROM TASK TO TASK, I WILL NEVER GET IT ALL DONE, FOR ME “IDEAL” IS WITH ME. DEADLINES AND MY NEED FOR APPROVAL, THEY DRIVE ME. THEY DEMAND PERFORMANCE FROM ME, BEYOND THE LIMITS OF MY SCHEDULE. THEY ANOINT MY HEAD WITH MIGRAINES. MY IN-BASKET OVERFLOWS. SURELY FATIGUE AND TIME PRESSURE SHALL FOLLOW ME ALL THE DAYS OF MY LIFE, AND I WILL DWELL IN THE BONDS OF FRUSTRATION FOREVER.
IN THE REST OF GOD WE FIND THREE GREAT QUALITIES
1. CELEBRATION: THAT WHICH LIFTS OUR SOULS. IT WAS NOT BY ACCIDENT THAT WORK WAS PROHIBITED DURING THE TIME OF FESTIVALS. IT BECOMES A TIME OF REJOICING AND PRAISING GOD FOR HIS BLESSINGS.
2. RECUPERATION: THAT WHICH PROVIDES RECOVERY FOR OUR SOULS. IT BRINGS US BACK TO OUR FORMER OR ORIGINAL CONDITION. JUST AS A PIANO HAS TO BE TUNED IN TIME TO BRING IT BACK TO IT’S ORIGINAL NOTES, SO TOO MUST YOU AND I.
3. CONTEMPLATION: THAT WHICH ENRICHES OUR SOULS. THE LATIN WORD FOR LEISURE IS “SKOLA”. WE GET THE WORD FOR SCHOOL FROM IT. THE IDEA IS THAT WE NEED TO STOP WHAT WE ARE DOING SO WE CAN DEVELOP AND LEARN.
IF YOUR LIFE IS BUSY AND YOU ARE WORN OUT TODAY, I HAVE JUST ONE QUESTION FOR YOU. WHO IS YOUR SHEPHERD?
